1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to carriers, and more specifically to bicycle mounted carriers adapted to carry one or more bats, balls, and gloves.
2. Description of the Related Art
As soon as man devised ways to transport himself about more quickly and efficiently than on foot, he was also faced with the challenge of finding new ways to simultaneously transport belongings or supplies. Through the ages, animals, and then, later, various machines have been used for transportation. A multitude of carriers have been created, some for very specific cargo or modes of transport and others for a wide variety of cargo sizes and types. The present invention, a carrier for bats, balls, and gloves such as might be used in baseball or softball, finds the greatest utility when used in combination with the bicycle.
The bicycle has only minimal weight, and, while faster than a person on foot, normally attains speeds low enough to pose only minimal danger to the safety and well-being of a bicyclist. Owing in part to the small mass and low speeds, a bicyclist also poses little danger to others. Consequently, bicycles have been and continue to be a very significant mode of transportation for persons of all ages.
Most of the time, bicycles and children make a good combination. However, bicycles do not inherently provide good cargo carrying capability. This is particularly true of long or bulky cargo, such as a baseball bat. Unfortunately, not only do children frequently ride bicycles, but they also frequently play baseball. Since baseball diamonds require a significant amount of land space, they are often centrally located within parks or community centers. When children get together to play baseball, some may walk and others may get a ride in an automobile. There will, however, always be a number of children present who have come to the game by riding their bicycle.
When faced with the challenge of transporting a baseball bat, children will typically try to carry the bat in their hands. One way this may be accomplished is by laying the bat across the handle bars, transverse to the longitudinal axis of the bicycle. This technique works well when the bicycle rider is traveling straight forward, with no obstacles on either side. However, there will always be obstacles, including such things as parked cars, street signs, buildings, pedestrians and other bicycles. Because the baseball bat will typically extend farther to the sides than the bicycle or the rider, a bicyclist carrying a transverse bat will frequently swerve to avoid these obstacles. This, of course, endangers the bicyclist.
Another way to carry the bat is parallel to the longitudinal axis of the bicycle. In this case, the bicyclist will attempt to hold the bat simultaneous with the handle grip. This can be terribly precarious, since, when the rider turns a corner or hits a bump, the bat may slip or pivot in the rider's grip and interfere with the wheel spokes. As is immediately apparent, the rider may be thrown from the bike and seriously injured.
Safe recreation is recognized as being highly beneficial to the proper development of children. Consequently, it is desirable to encourage children to participate in baseball, regardless of the mode of transportation required. However, bats pose a particular hazard to bicycles, since the length and weight of the bats make them very difficult to handle while still safely gripping handle bars on the bicycle. In the worst case, particularly during larger baseball games, many young baseball players may be riding their bicycles in the vicinity of automobiles. To risk just one of those children accidentally entangling a bat in the wheel spokes and being hit by a car is unacceptable, and every effort needs to be made to ensure the safety of the young baseball players.
Several attempts have been made in the prior art to accommodate baseball bats and balls. Exemplary of these are U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,987,944 and 4,069,956 to David Shearer, Sr., and David Shearer, Jr. In these two patents, two different carriers are illustrated that can be used in combination with a bicycle. The older of the two patents illustrates an under-seat bat support. While the support will provide a safer means for transporting a baseball bat, some drawbacks may also be observed. In that disclosure, the bat extends under a banana seat in a somewhat parallel to the ground orientation. This limits the applicability of that carrier to those bikes that either have a banana seat or that alternatively offer connection points that will accommodate the carrier. Furthermore, since the bat extends substantially behind the seat, a person will find it difficult to swing their leg over the seat to sit down on the bicycle. The more recent of the two patents illustrates a ball carrier. However, the ball carrier and bat must coexist in the same space under the seat. This will, depending upon the model of the bicycle, prove to be difficult or impossible in some instances.